their 16th birthday. If you come to a UK (3) _____ school before you (4) _____ the age of 16, you will
study towards GCSE examinations in up to 12 subjects. Some subjects are compulsory, including
English arid mathematics, and you can select (5) _____, such as music, drama, geography and history
from a series of options. GCSEs provide a good all-round education (6) _____ you can build on at
college and eventually at university.
AS- and A-levels are taken after GCSEs. They are the UK qualifications most (7) _____ accepted
for entry to university and are available in subjects from the humanities, arts, sciences and social
sciences as well as in (8) _____ subjects such as engineering, and leisure and tourism. You can study
up to four subjects at (9) _____ same time for two years, (10) _____ AS-level examinations at the end
of your first year (called the lower-sixth) and A-level qualifications at the end of your second year
(called the upper-sixth).
1. a. short b. long c. big d. long
2. a. similarly b. fortunately c. approximately d. virtually
3. a. dependence b. independence c. independent d. independently
4. a. reach b. come c. approach d. go
5. a. other b. each other c. another d. others
6. a. what b. that c. where d. whose
7. a. wide b. widely c. width d. widen
8. a. practical b. apprentice c. vocational d. physical
9. a. a b. an c. the d. Ø
10. a. holding b. choosing c. putting d. taking
Read the two passages carefully and choose the correct answer.
Vietnam's education system can be divided into 5 categories: pre-primary, primary, intermediate,
secondary, and higher education.
Public kindergartens usually admit children from the age of 18 months to 5 years. Children at 4 or
5 years of age are sometimes taught the alphabet and basic math. This level of education is only
popular in major cities.
Children normally start their primary education at the age of six. Education at this level lasts 5
years and it is compulsory for all children. This compulsory education may be one of the reasons why,
despite remaining a less developed country, the literate proportion of the country's population is very
high, over 90% on average.
Middle schools teach students from grade 6 to 9. This educational level is generalized throughout
most of the country - except in very remote provinces, which expect to popularize and standardize
middle education fully within the next few years. Intermediate is a non-compulsory schooling form in
Vietnam.
Secondary education, which consists of grades 10, 11 and 12, is standardized in all major urban
regions, but is not in rural provinces. After 3 high school terms, all students must attend a graduation
test. This test often consists of 6 subjects differently selected each year but has to contain the 3
compulsory ones: Foreign Language (mostly English), Mathematics and Literature. The Vietnamese
government intends to merge this test with the university entrance test in 2009.
1. Pre-primary education in Vietnam is popularized all over the country.